Joselle smashes national records at World Swimming Championships
Ghana’s rising swimming sensation, Joselle Mensah, made a splash on the global stage by breaking two national records at the 2025 World Swimming Championships in Singapore, despite narrowly missing out on the semi-finals.
Making her World Championships debut, the 21-year-old freestyle specialist clocked 26.48 seconds in the 50m freestyle heats last Saturday, shaving 0.04 seconds off her previous national best of 26.52s — a record she set at the Accra 2023 African Games, which also secured her qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Although her third-place finish in the heats wasn't enough to advance, the US-based swimmer once again showed her mettle and consistency at the highest level.
Earlier in the competition (July 31), Mensah swam 58.98 seconds in the 100m freestyle, bettering her previous national record of 59.50 seconds set at the 2024 Africa Aquatics Zone 2 Championships in Accra.
Her impressive performances mark a significant leap forward for Ghanaian swimming and further establish Mensah as one of the country’s brightest prospects in the pool.
Ghanaian disappointments
Ghana's three other representatives — Abeiku Jackson, Harry Stacey and UK-based Nubia Adjei — also featured in Singapore but failed to progress past the heats.
Team captain Jackson, a veteran of multiple international meets, finished 8th in his 50m butterfly heat on Sunday with a time of 24.49 seconds, far off his national record of 23.55 seconds. He was later disqualified in the 100m butterfly event last Friday.
Paris 2024 Olympian Stacey, who impressed at the Africa Zone 2 Championships last year, also made his World Championships debut. He posted 23.05 seconds in the 50m freestyle heats to place 8th, and swam 51.43 seconds in the 100m freestyle, finishing 10th.
In the women’s events, Nubia (Ghana’s 100m backstroke record holder) raced to a personal best of 28.82 seconds in the 50m butterfly, and earlier placed 10th in the 50m backstroke with a time of 32.23 seconds.
Relays and Officiating Milestone
In the Mixed 4x100m Medley Relay last Wednesday, the quartet of Jackson, Stacey, Joselle and Nubia combined to finish sixth with a time of 4:13.77 minutes. However, the quartet did not participate in the Mixed 4x100m Freestyle Relay last Saturday.
Beyond the pool, Ghana’s presence was also felt in officiating, with Simon Asaah making history as the first Ghanaian appointed to officiate at both the World Aquatics Swimming Championships and the upcoming World Aquatics Masters Championships, which begin on Monday.
GSA chief hails effort
Speaking after the championships, Ghana Swimming Association (GSA) President, Delphina Quaye, praised the team’s spirit and resilience.
“Although it was a slow pool, the team did their best in both individual and relay events — especially the debutants, who overcame their nerves and put in splendid performances,” she said.
“Nubia set a new personal best in the 50m butterfly, and Joselle set two new national records. We head straight home to prepare for the Africa Aquatics Zone 2 Swimming Championships in Accra this October.”
Accompanying the swimmers to Singapore were GSA President Quaye and General Secretary Mohammed Muniru Kassim, underlining the Association’s commitment to raising Ghana’s profile in international swimming.
Box-out: Ghana’s Top Performers (Singapore 2025)
Joselle Mensah
50m Freestyle: 26.48s (New National Record)
100m Freestyle: 58.98s (New National Record)
Nubia Adjei
50m Butterfly: 28.82s (Personal Best)
